Surrender in the Storms

On Friday, June 30th-- a day not too dissimilar than this one-- I stood at the bar top of my kitchen working. It was only mid-day and the work that I'd set out to do hadn't been touched. On the contrary, it seemed the to-dos had doubled and what I'd actually gotten done was minimal.

Slowly, the all too familiar feelings of tension and fear arose. On top of that... It started to rain. "Here we go," I thought, characterizing the rainfall as a symbol of sadness and the dreary state of my day. But, as those negative thoughts and feelings continued to swirl around my mind, a small voice began to ring through the chaos: "does it have to be bad?"

At first I ignored it, thinking, "of course, this is a sign of an off day. It's rain! That usually means 'Stay where you are until it passes', right?''... "But what would you do if there was an alternative?," the voice asked. No sooner had the question arisen, than I felt my inner self respond, "dance in the rain!" Realizing that I could, in fact, choose to view the downpour as an opportunity for joy instead of sadness, I set my computer to sleep, ran upstairs and tossed on my favorite one piece, and then ran out the front door into the rain...

How many times have "storm clouds" accumulated in your life, promising a downpour?

We've conditioned ourselves that when a storm comes, plans are canceled, traffic increases, and, in some cases, food is bought in mass to prepare for an unknown number of days ahead to remain indoors. What would your life look like if, when storms came, instead of bracing for its impact, you ran out into its center? What would your life look like if, instead of trying to control every circumstance, plan every detail, and manage every plan, you surrendered once in a while to allow life to move naturally?

Storms are due to come in our lives. Instead of worrying when signs of the next one arise, I encourage you to surrender and embrace it fully.

For me, it looked like dancing in the rain. For you, it may look like writing a song, painting a picture, reading a book, or, like Christ, even just taking a nap.